Mural Wall, Paducah Kentucky
Paducah's flood wall murals - historic downtown Paducah, KY
The Floodwall that protects historic downtown Paducah from the Ohio and Tennessee Rivers overflowing their banks includes three city blocks of painted murals that capture important moments in Paducah's history.
The murals were designed & painted by Robert Dafford and the Dafford Muralists of Lafayette, Louisiana. The project began in 1996; the last panel was completed in 2007. Each mural panel has an interpretative plaque with a short history lesson on the scene depicted in the panel. Each panel also has its own spotlight making the mural walk an enjoyable evening stroll and tourist attraction.
In addition to enjoying 45 attractive works of art, taking the mural wall tour serves as a multi-media history lesson on Paducah and NW Kentucky.
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Portraits of the Past - Paducah's Wall to Wall Floodwall Murals
< < < This panel celebrates the day in July 1996 that all three of the Delta Queen Steamboat Company's boats (Delta Queen, Mississippi Queen, & American Queen) docked at Paducah at the same time. Shown here are the "Paducah Ambassadors" welcoming the Queens.
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< < < Paducah experienced strong economic growth during the heyday of riverboat trade from 1870 to 1915. Here packet boats unload at the Paducah Wharf Boat which was permanently moored at the foot of Broadway Ave to facilitate the loading and unloading of passengers and cargo.
In 1938 the Ohio River froze solid completely across bringing barge traffic to a halt but providing a winter playground for Paducah residents and school children freed from school by the freezing weather. > > > |
This mural depicts the day on November 11, 1803 when the Lewis & Clark Corps of Discovery passed by Paducah on their trek to find the Northwest Passage.
This panel commemorates the Civil War era where pro-Confederacy Paducah was occupied by Union General US Grant and a pontoon bridge was built across the Ohio to Ft. Anderson on the Illinois shore.
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In 1950 the US Atomic Energy Commission began plans to build a Nuclear Gaseous Diffusion Plant ushering in the Atomic Era to Paducah. Today the facility is the nation's only uranium enrichment facility and is a global supplier of enriched uranium for electricity production.
If you visit Paducah be sure to take time to visit the Floodwall Murals, a unique artistic creation and historical exhibit to boot.
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Nearby Grand Rivers, Kentucky . . .
About 20 miles east of Paducah, Grand Rivers has an interesting collection of unique gift shops, artisan shops, antique stores. . . including Patti's 1800 Settlement & Restaurant. Grand Rivers also sponsors a Quilt Show during the same time period of the Paducah AQS Show. The nearby Canal Park campground is a popular spot for RV'ers attending the Paducah show. Go Here for more info on Grand Rivers
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Links to things to see and do in Paducah and Western Kentucky
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